


(Not So) Similar Conditions

by Gavilan



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, And not platonic cuddling, Awkwardness, Brotp, Conference Hotels, Cuddling & Snuggling, First Date, First Kiss, Fluff, Getting Together, Kissing, M/M, Oblivious Tony Stark, Oh good that's a tag, Platonic Bed Sharing, Platonic Cuddling, Rhodey is the best bro, Sharing a Bed, he's very oblivious
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-29
Updated: 2019-08-29
Packaged: 2020-09-28 21:21:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,519
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20432636
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Gavilan/pseuds/Gavilan
Summary: Tony and Bucky share a bed at a conference. It takes six months and some very different conference bed sharing with Rhodey for Tony to figure out exactly why cuddling with Bucky felt so awkward.





	(Not So) Similar Conditions

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Cinnamon_Anemone](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cinnamon_Anemone/gifts).

> TSB square S4: Sharing a Bed  
BBB square B3: Cuddling and Snuggling
> 
> Also a gift for the Winteriron discord Valentine's Day event for the lovely Cinnamon_Anemone. I hope you like this very late Valentine featuring lots of winteriron bed sharing, cuddles and fluff with a side of tonyrhodey brotp. 
> 
> Betaing by the wonderful Lore

Tony stared at the bed, singular, that took up the majority of the hotel room. He’d known he’d be rooming with Bucky for the NSPE conference, of course. He’d helped Pepper book the hotel, hire rental cars, find enough chapter members interested in going who were over twenty-five and could _ drive _ said rental cars, and so on. He’d known that he and Bucky, as the only two guys on this particular trip, would share a hotel room. At the time, he’d been happy that the silly gender norms meant that he’d have only one roommate, and he’d had a good laugh over it with Pepper since she and Nat would get to room together along with the other women, even though they were dating. Heteronormative society at its finest. But somehow, with all that, he hadn’t actually thought about the room. And the bed. 

“There’s, um, only one bed,” he remarked, glancing at Bucky for a brief second before directing his gaze firmly back to the bed in question. 

“Yep,” Bucky agreed. 

“I was expecting two. Were you expecting two? I think that’s a standard with hotel rooms, isn’t it, two beds?” 

Bucky chuckled. “I don’t know, Tony. This is my first conference, remember?” 

Tony nodded. They’d talked about that on their long van ride. Bucky had waved his arms wildly talking about his prosthetic project, almost whacking Nat in the head and getting a very scary Russian glare for it. Tony had tried to reassure him about the presentation and given him some pointers, since Tony was an old hat at the conference circuit after three years as the treasurer for the NSPE chapter. Which was why he was so taken aback — he knew there were usually two beds. 

“Let me just text Pepper, make sure there hasn’t been a room mix up or something,” he offered. 

Bucky nodded and sat down on the bed, tucking his shoulder-length hair behind his ear. 

Pepper’s response to Tony’s frantic text was an eye-roll emoji and a phone call. 

“Yes, Tony, there’s only one bed. I snagged a single room for a discount since the conference block means most people want double occupancy.”

“So what, we’re supposed to share?” 

“Um, yeah,” Pepper replied. “The other rooms have four people and two beds, Tony, you know this. Do the math, everyone’s sharing.”

“But you’re sharing with Nat. That doesn’t count, you’re dating.” 

Tony could practically hear Pepper’s eyes roll. “The other six girls on the trip aren’t dating, and they’re not bothering me after a ten hour drive,” Pepper pointed out. “You’ll be fine.” Tony heard Jan’s excited chatter over the line. “I’m going now, Tony. Get some sleep; you’ll need it to stay awake for the 8 AM keynote tomorrow.” 

Tony turned around to face the bed again. He caught sight of a highly amused smirk on Bucky’s face for an instant before they locked eyes and Bucky blushed all across his sharp cheekbones and looked away. 

“So, right, sharing,” Tony managed. “At least it’s only two nights.” 

“It’s fine,” Bucky muttered. Then he grinned and looked up at Tony, eyes sparkling.

“What?” Tony asked.

“At least we’re not Jan and Nakia,” he said. “We don’t have to listen to Nat and Pepper sharing a bed.” 

Tony gave an exaggerated full-body shudder. “Thank god for small mercies,” he agreed. 

* * *

Tony woke up slowly, feeling unusually warm and relaxed. He pressed his face into the soft hair that was tickling his nose and snuggled closer, feeling a wide, muscled back. He stroked his hand over his bed partner’s shoulder where Tony was practically hugging him, more backpack than big spoon with his leg thrown over the man’s thick thigh. 

“Your hair smells nice,” Tony muttered into his neck. 

“Hmm?” the man started shifting at the sound of Tony’s voice, stretching his legs out and making Tony aware of every single inch they were pressed together. Mm, that muscular back apparently went with a truly excellent ass from what Tony could feel, and he couldn’t resist rubbing up against it just a bit as he started to wake up. And then the man rolled over, and Tony crashed awake all at once, icy mortification flooding him as he came face to face with Bucky, Bucky Barnes, his friend and engineering buddy, whose ass he had just been grinding in his sleep. 

“Shit, sorry,” Tony said from where he’d rolled to the farthest edge of the bed. “I swear I didn’t mean to invade your space or come on to you like that, sorry.”

“It’s all right, it’s, um, no big deal, really,” Bucky muttered, blushing bright red all the way down his neck. 

“Right, no big deal,” Tony muttered back. “Just some regular conference hotel awkwardness, right?” He groaned and rubbed a hand over his face. “I really am sorry, Bucky. I… yeah, okay, morning, awkwardness over, I’m gonna take a shower, okay?” 

“Sure, fine, it’s all good, really,” Bucky agreed.

Tony quick marched to the bathroom and locked himself in. 

“Fuck,” he muttered to himself as he started the water in the shower. What was wrong with him? _ Nice move, there, Tony, exactly what he needs the night before his first conference presentation _. He winced when he remembered how uncomfortable Bucky had been, stuttering and blushing. And yeah, he’d noticed that Bucky was gorgeous, how could he not? But he was just a friend. When was the last time Tony had snuggled in his sleep anyway? 

He shook himself. “Just out of practice,” he muttered. He hadn’t shared a bed with anyone in ages; his last relationship had been with Pepper in freshman year, and he didn’t exactly invite hookups to stay the night. He hadn’t realized he’d missed the human comfort. Not worth it, he reminded himself, thinking of Bucky’s horrified look. 

Tony finished his shower and dried off quickly, then realized he hadn’t brought any clothes with him. Damn, he was going to have to go out there and face Bucky in just a towel. 

Well, nothing for it. He tucked the towel firmly around his waist and popped his head out the bathroom door. “Shower’s free,” he said, then stepped out, forcing himself not to hunch over or hide his chest. It was just a body, and he refused to be ashamed of it. 

Bucky’s eyes went wide, tracing over the scar from his childhood heart surgery and down to the towel, and he let out a little “eep” and ran for the bathroom, clothes bundled to his chest. 

Tony swallowed hard. He was really messing everything up. Everything he’d done since getting to this damn hotel room had been an exercise in invading Bucky’s space and making him uncomfortable. 

Bucky was a transfer student who’d joined last year, so Tony didn’t know him the same way he knew the rest of the engineering cohort; making it through Fundamentals of Materials Science and Engineering together really cemented friendships. But Bucky was _ nice _. He was smart, could keep up with Tony on a rant and even add his own ideas, and he was caring, quickly becoming the mother hen of the group. There was an edge to him too; Tony’d seen him stand up to the notoriously bad-tempered computational mathematics professor and win after he noticed him playing favorites. Tony took joy from the friendship they were building, and here he was ruining it by being an unintentional creep.

And if he didn’t get a move on, Tony realized, he was going to be even more of a creep when Bucky got out of the shower and found him still standing there in his towel. Right. Clothes, then coffee; he could do this. It would all look better with coffee. Right? 

* * *

Things did in fact look better once he had acquired clothes, coffee, and a modicum of composure. 

“Hey, you clean up nice,” Tony commented, promptly forgetting his determination not to be awkward when Bucky walked out of the bathroom in a fitted grey suit.

“Thanks,” he said, grabbing the hair tie from his mouth and securing his hair in a bun. “Professional enough?” 

Tony nodded. “Absolutely. I wouldn’t be surprised to see some guys in t-shirts, honestly, even though there really shouldn’t be. Full suit is a win.” 

“You look good too,” Bucky offered, gesturing to Tony’s outfit. “Nice tie.” He’d gone with a black suit, but he couldn’t resist the bright red tie with an intricate circuit board pattern on it.

“Thanks. My dad hates it, but college events don’t care if I wear stupid designs on my tie.” 

“Hey, it’s not stupid if it’s in your field, right?” 

“Sounds like good logic to me,” Tony said with a smile. “Now come on, Pepper will kill us if we miss the keynote.” 

They headed down to the hotel lobby and a day of panels and presentations and networking, laughing and teasing each other as usual. Maybe, just maybe, Tony hadn’t ruined things last night after all. 

* * *

When he got back to the hotel room that evening, Tony was still high on a successful presentation, smiling to himself and going over the afternoon in his head. Getting to meet the people whose articles and research he’d used in his classes was always a rush, and getting noticed by not one but _ two _ big names in AI for his research before they recognized his name had been awesome. Maybe he could do this, he thought: be Tony Stark first and Howard’s son second. He tossed his briefcase onto the bed and then froze as memories of the morning, of waking up wrapped around Bucky, washed away his smile. He sat down hard next to his bag. Fuck, he was going to have to spend another night sharing a bed with Bucky. His mind flashed back to the look on Bucky’s face when he’d woken up in Tony’s arms. 

“Nope, no way,” he said to himself. There was no way he was spending another night in the same bed as Bucky. He wouldn’t do that to anyone, make them uncomfortable by forcing his neediness on them while they slept, but especially not someone as nice as Bucky, someone who was obviously too shy to tell Tony to fuck off for being a creep. 

“What’re we saying no to?” came a voice from the doorway, and Tony jumped and saw Bucky grinning, hair falling around his face where some locks had valiantly escaped his bun. 

“Nothing, nothing,” Tony started, then realized he would, in fact, need to talk to Bucky at some point before they climbed into the bed again, and gathered his nerve. “Listen, I’m sorry about last night. I won’t, I mean, I shouldn’t have… look, I’ll just stay up tonight and sleep in the van on the way back, okay? I’m not one of the drivers, it’ll be fine.” 

Bucky was frowning now, confusion slowly giving over to embarrassment as he puzzled out what Tony was saying. 

“Hey, no, you gotta sleep, Tony. And, um, I…” he blushed, and Tony winced as the same look from the morning made an appearance. “I didn’t mind,” he said, and Tony took a second to process that, getting halfway through an elaborate plan to avoid ever making that look happen again before the words penetrated and he looked up sharply. 

“What?”

Bucky shrugged. “It’s just cuddling, I get it. I mean, I won’t mind if you snuggle up to me tonight, that’s all. Honest,” he added, as Tony raised his eyebrows. 

“You seemed like you minded this morning,” Tony pointed out. 

Bucky shook his head. “Nah, I was just surprised. I can’t remember the last time I shared a bed with anyone, so I wasn’t expecting it. Was nice, though.” 

Tony breathed a sigh of relief. “Yeah, same here. Last time I shared a bed was freshman year when I was with Pepper.” 

Bucky blinked. “Pepper? But isn’t she-” 

“Super vocally lesbian and madly in love with Natasha?” Tony asked, smiling. “Yeah, there’s a reason it didn’t last. We broke it off when she figured it out and came out. No hard feelings. But just the occasional date for me since, no life partner or anything, so, yeah, guess I’m a little touch starved.” 

“Hey, no judgement, my last serious relationship was senior year of high school,” Bucky said. “Guess that makes me a little touch starved myself.”

“So no hard feelings?” Tony was still trying to make sense of the sudden about face everything had taken. He’d been so sure Bucky was uncomfortable with him, and now they were sharing their relationship histories and admitting to being touch starved? Tony allowed himself to hope that he might come out of this conference with his friendship with Bucky intact. 

“No hard feelings,” Bucky agreed. He took a deep breath and looked away, blush rising again. Tony frowned, worried that Bucky wasn’t quite as nonchalant as he seemed, but he decided all he could do was take Bucky at his word. 

* * *

Tony crawled into the bed and positioned himself carefully on the far side, leaving as much space as he could between himself and Bucky, who was scrolling through his phone on the other side. Bucky set his phone down on the nightstand and turned to face Tony. 

“Hey,” he said softly. “I meant it, I don’t mind cuddling.” 

“I’m fine,” Tony objected. “Maybe I got it out of my system last night and can stay on my side tonight.” Tony scooted a bit more toward the edge of the bed. 

Bucky sighed. “Come here,” he said, reaching out and pulling Tony into his arms. He curled up behind Tony, warmth radiating from his chest where it pressed against Tony’s back, arm firmly over his side. 

Tony froze, then relaxed into the warmth. “Oookay, this is good, we can do this,” he said cautiously. It was nice, being held, and whatever Bucky’s earlier reservations, he seemed comfortable, shifting them around till they were both supported as best they could manage with the hotel’s mostly-air pillows and then settling in with a little wriggle against Tony’s back that was absolutely the cutest thing he’d ever felt. 

“See? Cuddling,” said Bucky. 

Tony smiled. “Cuddling,” he agreed. Then he laughed. “God, we sound like we’re five.” 

Bucky chuckled, a warm puff of air against Tony’s neck. “People could stand to do more things as if we were five, I think.” 

“Hmm, you may have a point,” Tony murmured, snuggling back into Bucky’s soft presence at his back. 

“Goodnight,” said Bucky. 

“Goodnight,” Tony answered, already drifting off.

* * *

“Got a side preference, Tones?” Rhodey asked, gesturing at one of the two beds in the hotel room. The other was taken by some students from environmental science or some such—Tony hadn’t actually paid attention other than to make sure he snagged a seat next to Rhodey, taking advantage of the fact that the university’s NCUR program meant he wasn’t organizing anything. It was weird to go on one of these conference trips without Pepper and the rest of the NSPE chapter, but at least he had his Rhodey. 

“Um, I’ll take the non-AC side, that thing looks like it might frost over during the night,” Tony said, eyeing the wall unit under the window with suspicion. 

“Gotcha.” Rhodey tossed his duffel down next to his side and fished out his pajamas and toiletries. “I’ll hit the bathroom first, if you don’t mind. You partying?” 

Tony shook his head. “Nah, I’ll join you. I hate early morning poster slots.” 

“I feel you,” Rhodey said sympathetically. His poster session wasn’t until after lunch, the traitor. 

Tony rolled his suitcase over to the closet and started hanging up his suit. Fuck, he’d have to iron it now since he had the early slot in the morning. With a sigh, he set up the rickety ironing board and got started. 

“I think I’m just gonna hit the hay,” he muttered to Rhodey as he passed off the iron. 

Rhodey nodded as he started on his own dress shirt. “Join you in a second, Tones.” 

Tony squeezed past Rhodey’s ironing and changed into his pajamas—really just sweatpants and a worn out AC/DC shirt, but who was counting—and collapsed under the thin coverlet of the hotel bed. 

“Night, Platypus,” he mumbled sleepily when Rhodey joined him. 

“Night, Tones. I set your alarm,” Rhodey replied. 

“Thanks.” 

“Don’t worry about it. That’s what friends are for, right?” 

Tony thought about replying, but the thought slipped away as he fell into a dreamless sleep. 

* * *

Tony’s alarm woke him far too early the next morning, and he rolled over to see Rhodey curled up in a ball on his side of the bed. He smiled at the sight—you wouldn’t think his long and lanky friend could bunch up so small. The alarm went off again, a quiet marimba scale that wouldn’t wake the entire room instead of Tony’s usual blaring guitar, courtesy of Rhodey. 

Though actually, he realized, looking around as he woke up a bit more, the environmental science dudes must’ve been the party type and crashed somewhere else, since the other bed was empty. 

“Come on, Platypus, if I have to be up so do you,” Tony said, reaching over and shaking Rhodey’s shoulder lightly. 

Rhodey frowned, stretched out, and opened his eyes, already more alert than Tony had managed after several minutes. 

“Coffee?” he inquired. 

Tony peered around the room. “Looks like we’ve got a caffeine machine, I’ll get it set up.” 

It wasn’t until he had his hands curled around a paper cup of reluctantly steaming coffee that he made the connection. 

“Similar conditions!” he exclaimed, straightening up and staring at Rhodey. 

“What?”

“Similar conditions, different results. I shared a bed with you, on a conference trip, after a long, roughly ten-hour drive, with no other people in the room.”

“Yeah, Tony, that’s normal, what about it?”

“It wasn’t awkward!”

Rhodey frowned. “Of course it wasn’t awkward, Tones, you’re my friend. It’s a bit awkward with acquaintances, sure, but it’s no biggie. Just stick to your own side of the bed and you’re all set.”

“But I’m friends with Bucky, too,” Tony pointed out. 

“Bucky? What’s he got to do with it?” 

Tony waved the hand that wasn’t holding the coffee. “Remember the NSPE trip last semester? The one you didn’t go on because you had that ROTC thing?” 

Rhodey nodded, clearly perplexed. 

“Well, I shared a room with Bucky, and there was only one bed because Pepper got this discount and… anyway, it was super awkward and I woke up all curled up with him and made everything awful. And I thought it was just because I hadn’t shared a bed with someone in ages, you know? Totally explainable given the variables. But then you and I had the same variables, and it didn’t get awkward.” 

Rhodey just raised his eyebrows. “And why might that be, Tones?”

Tony paused and blinked a few times. “I don’t know, what’s different?” 

Rhodey sighed and put his head in his hands. “Are you really that oblivious, Tony?”

“What do you… wait, are you trying to say I like Bucky? That’s ridiculous, I just…” Tony trailed off, rethinking his interactions with Bucky before and after that day in the hotel room. Sure, he liked Bucky, but not like that, right? He was a friend, that was all. A good friend, and they’d gotten even closer since the conference they’d silently agreed never to talk about. And sure, sue him, he’d looked occasionally. Bucky Barnes was pretty much unanimously the hottest guy in the department, after all. But that didn’t mean… “I like Bucky!” he exclaimed.

“No shit, Tones. You seriously didn’t realize? You spend every second you’re in the same room as the guy staring at him with hopeless gooey eyes, it was getting gross.”

“What? Nonsense!” Tony exclaimed, attempting to wave his hands and nearly spilling the tepid coffee in his cup. “He’s smart, and funny, of course I look at him, he’s interesting! Everyone…” Tony trailed off as he reevaluated his memories and realized that the way Bucky lit up the room didn’t immediately draw everyone’s attention. Just his. “Okay, yeah, apparently I am that oblivious.”

Rhodey shook his head. “Well, I’m glad you’ve had your epiphany. You’ll have to reevaluate your life later, though. Your session starts in half an hour, and you definitely need a shower.” 

“Fuck!” Tony shouted, and this time he did spill the coffee as he flailed and tripped in the direction of the bathroom. 

* * *

_So when are you asking him out? _ Rhodey texts Tony when they’ve been back from the conference for three days. 

** _When I’m ready_ **, Tony replies irritably. 

_ So, never :P _, comes the reply, and Tony frowns at his phone. 

** _Not if you keep pestering me_ ** **,** Tony writes back.

_ Fine, have it your way. Just don’t bring your pining to the NSPE meeting next week _.

Tony lets out an outraged noise at his phone. 

** _I’m not pining!!!_ **

_ Definitely pining. _

** _Oh fuck off. _ **

Tony sets his phone down and runs his hands through his hair. He’s sitting on the awkwardly hard couch in the student lounge. Bucky is in the fabrication lab, he knows, and he’s been trying to work up the nerve to go in there and talk to him for the past half hour. He sighs, stares at the door to the hallway that will take him to the lab, and then reluctantly picks up his phone again. 

** _But what do I say?_ **

_ Nope, thought I was supposed to fuck off. _

** _Okay, fine, sorry. Now help me._ **

_ Look, man, just go in there, tell him you got those damn reservations, and ask him to go to dinner with you. It’s not that hard. _

** _But what if he says no??_ **

_ Then I’ll go to dinner with you and you can cry on my shoulder, dumbass. _

_ But seriously, he’s been giving you hearteyes right back, there’s no way the dude’s saying no. _

** _He has not._ **

_ Who you gonna trust on this, the guy who didn’t know he had a crush for six months or the guy in the functional relationship? _

** _Okay, fine_ **

** _… really?_ **

_ Yes really Tones, go ask the guy out already. _

Tony took a deep breath and stood up, shoving his phone into his pocket. He could do this. 

When he stepped into the lab, he very nearly walked right out again. He could hear the clinking of metal being hammered as soon as he opened the soundproof door. Bucky was working on something with his back to the door—probably a prototype for his latest project, but Tony wasn’t sure because Bucky had stripped down to his tank top to work and sweat glistened on every muscle in his arms as he swung the hammer. Tony stared as the door swung shut behind him. How had he not recognized that his fascination with Bucky contained so much attraction? Tony mentally shook his past self for being so oblivious. Bucky finished his hammering and turned. Unfortunately for Tony, he did so while pulling the hem of his shirt up to wipe his brow, and thus encountered Tony in a somewhat incoherent state as he stared at Bucky’s abs. 

“Hey, what’s up?” he asked, walking over with a grin. “Haven’t seen you in a few days, how was NCUR?” 

“Huh?” Tony said eloquently, Bucky’s smile having distracted him from his abs only to equally confound him with its beauty. “Oh, right, NCUR, it was fine. Mostly freshmen at the presentations, but a few good ideas floating around.” 

“I’m glad it was worth your while. Maybe I’ll try it next year.” 

“Yeah, sure, you do that,” Tony said. Then he took a deep breath. He had to do this now, before he lost his nerve. “Actually, I, um, wanted to ask you something?”

“Sure, what’s up?” Bucky smiled at him and leaned against one of the work tables. 

“So I was thinking about… um… god I don’t know how to even say this…” Tony trailed off into incoherent sputtering, trying to make the words come out, and ended up taking a detour. “Remember the NSPE conference?” he managed, and it wasn’t quite what he’d had in mind but he could work with that, maybe.

“Yeah, sure,” Bucky said. “You kept me from going crazy with nerves before my presentation.” 

“Well, I was thinking about that night, actually,” Tony persevered. 

Bucky looked down, but not before Tony caught a glimpse of the blush suffusing his cheeks. 

“What about it?” he asked, still staring at the floor. 

“I, um, it recently came to my attention that maybe the, well, cuddling—god it really sounds like I’m five, opposite of what I’m going for—anyway, apparently my total invasion of your space was a symptom of the fact that I think you’re super awesome and unbelievably hot and have been hopelessly attracted to you for months but too clueless to notice?” 

Bucky looked up, brows furrowed as he sorted through Tony’s words. He was still blushing hard, and Tony realized he probably was too, what with the swooping feeling in his stomach as he waited for Bucky’s response. 

Bucky smiled, and yep, Tony was completely gone on him, how could he not have realized? 

“You trying to ask me out?” 

“Yes!” Tony exclaimed. “That’s exactly what I’m trying to do. Y’know, I thought I had game, but apparently I was wrong.” He shook his head ruefully, but it didn’t matter, because Bucky seemed to be agreeing despite the complete mess Tony was making of things.

“I think you’re doing fine. It’s kind of adorable,” Bucky said, and then he was stepping into Tony’s space and running a hand cautiously along his cheek. Tony’s breath caught and trembled as he stared into Bucky’s silver eyes. 

“Can I kiss you?” Bucky whispered, and Tony nodded, his eyes slipping closed, and then Bucky’s mouth was on his, warm and new, his body hyper aware of the way Bucky’s breath brushed his skin, the softness of his lips. 

It was over in an instant, just a quick press of lips, but when Tony opened his eyes, the whole world had shifted, sparkling like Bucky’s eyes as he smiled at Tony. Tony liked Bucky Barnes, and Bucky liked him back.

“So, did you have a place in mind for this date?” Bucky asked, smile shifting into a smirk.

“Oh, yeah, right, I was going to ask you to go for dinner at this nice restaurant tomorrow, got reservations and everything. Does that work for you?” 

“It does. Out of curiosity, what would have happened to the reservations if I’d said no? Or if tomorrow wasn’t good for me?”

“Well, if you’d said no, I would have dragged Rhodey along to comfort me in my broken heart. And I knew you’d be free because I know your schedule, and wow, that’s kind of creepy, I swear I didn’t mean it creepily, I just notice things about you because I like you, not that I realized why until recently, but whatever.” Tony cut himself off when he noticed Bucky was silently chuckling at him. 

“It’s cute how the words run away with you,” he told Tony, and Tony felt his face get even redder than it already was, which he hadn’t thought was possible. 

Bucky ran his thumb over Tony’s flushed cheek and Tony promptly forgot all about words, leaning in to kiss Bucky. Bucky returned the kiss, smiling against Tony’s lips. 

“So, dinner, tomorrow,” Tony confirmed once he drew back. 

Bucky smiled, and Tony lost himself in his eyes. “Tomorrow,” he confirmed. “It’s a date.” 

* * *

Bucky showed up for their date in a grey blazer that made his eyes shine and sinfully tight jeans, and they walked from Tony’s apartment to the nearby restaurant—fancier than the pizza place that catered to the college students, but not so fancy it would make Bucky uncomfortable. Everything had changed, from the quick kiss exchanged when they met up to the way Bucky’s leg was currently pressed against his under the table as they enjoyed their meal, but at the same time nothing had changed, their conversation still flowing easily as they joked and laughed and discussed their classes and latest projects. 

“So what was going through your mind in that hotel room?” Tony asks curiously. “I was convinced you were horrified when we woke up like that, but then there was the cuddling, and now this…” Tony gestured between them. 

“At the conference?” Bucky shook his head, laughing under his breath. “That morning, I was mostly trying _ not _ to think about how gorgeous you were,” he admitted. “You’d been all over me, and then you came out in just that damn hotel towel… yeah, I was a goner.” 

Tony cocked his head, reevaluating the look he’d seen on Bucky’s face. “I thought you were horrified,” he admitted. “Between my behavior and the scar, well, you wouldn’t be the first to look away seeing me undressed.” 

Bucky clenched a fist at that and then visibly forced himself to relax. “You deserve better than that, honey. I wasn’t horrified. The opposite, honestly. I was trying not to push since you so clearly didn’t mean anything by any of it,” Bucky said. 

“So you’re telling me we could have been dating since July if I hadn’t been an oblivious idiot?” Tony asks. 

Bucky shrugs. “Maybe? I was scared too though, I wasn’t about to push and lose the awesome new friendship we had going.” 

Tony nodded. “Is it cheesy to say I’m excited to see where we end up?” he asked. 

Bucky laughed. “Yes, it’s cheesy, but I like it. I like _ you _, Tony.” 

Tony licked his lips and swallowed hard, the mood shifting in an instant. “I like you too,” he said, staring into Bucky’s eyes. He leaned across the table for a kiss, and they bumped noses and Tony nearly landed his tie in his tomato sauce, but it was perfect. 

Over dessert, the conference came up again. Tony was eating his amaretto-laced chocolate mousse with one hand while Bucky held the other, rubbing his thumb over the back of Tony’s hand in a way that was rapidly removing his ability to think about anything else. 

“Are you really touch-starved?” he asked, staring at their hands. “You seem like you could get all the touch you wanted.”

Bucky shook his head. “Sex, sure, I’ve had plenty of hookups. And it’s nice. But intimacy is hard for me if I don’t know someone well. Normally I'm awake the instant someone touches me; can't sleep with someone, not even after a hookup. That's what I was upset about the first night, at the conference. I thought I'd get no sleep before my presentation, but I was too shy to say anything. And then I woke up with you all draped over me, and just for an instant, I wasn't scared at all. I... didn't have any idea how to deal with that, with realizing how comfortable I was with you."

They looked at each other in silence, Bucky’s confession filling the space between them. Then Tony took a deep breath and leapt. “Do you want to come back to my place after dinner?”

Bucky blushed all across his cheekbones, and Tony immediately started talking. 

“Not for sex, well, maybe for sex, but either way, we could sleep together? I’ve got a nice bed, much better than the hotel, and excellent pillows, and we could cuddle—will that ever not make me think of sounding like a kid?—and be not-touch-starved together… and the words have run away with me again, stopping now.”

Bucky smiled at him. He was still blushing, but he didn’t seem upset or act like Tony had pushed things too far, so maybe it was okay. “I’d like that,” he said. “Sleeping with you. I have fond memories of it.” 

Tony smiled back. Bucky had a way of cutting through his anxiety and making the world okay. 

* * *

“Is this okay?” Tony asked, when they’d been kissing for a while. “We can do more if you want.” 

“This is perfect.” Bucky whispered into Tony’s ear, and he shivered. “We’ve got all the time in the world, honey, we don’t need to rush.” 

Tony’s breath caught at the beauty of that statement. Bucky wanted him, and wanted him for more than the time it took to get each other off. They had time. Tony smiled against Bucky’s lips. 

“What are you thinking, darling?” Bucky asked him, drawing back to look at him but still holding him tight. 

“I’m just happy,” Tony said, for once at a loss for words to express the sheer joy that bubbled up in his chest. 

“Me too,” Bucky agreed. “Come on, darling, let’s go to bed.” 

They curled up under the covers, Bucky’s chest warm against Tony’s back and their legs tangled together. 

“Goodnight,” Bucky murmured, pressing a gentle kiss to the back of Tony’s neck.

“Goodnight,” Tony returned, and fell asleep surrounded by Bucky’s warmth and the gentle sound of his breathing. 


End file.
